Clicker Training for Birds

[Shirley]

This thread began on Grey Feathers of the old forum, where I have pics of Holly in her harness, so I'm copying it over here:

Jean wrote:
How long have you been clicker training her. I believe that as a good way of training. I have been reading about it for awhile. Never spoke with someone that tried it personally.

I wrote:
I have worked with her just a few times since Skyer had to be in a collar. Dr. Cook highly recommended it, and I said I'd tried it way back when I got Shelby, and it didn't really work. Well, right there in the exam room she demonstrated that it DOES work and had Skyler touching a target stick for a treat w/the clicker and a voice command in a matter of moments!! So, I bought Melinda Johnson's book Clicker Training for Birds, re-joined her Yahoo Group, and away we went.

I have the things I've taught them on little movie clips online. I'll start a new thread if there's interest...

Shelby immediately quit nipping once she started c/t. That wasn't even anything I was working on. C/T is for positive behaviors, not for discipline. But the stopping of the nipping was a nice by-product of the C/T. She just liked it so much that she stopped nipping when I asked her to step up off of whomever she was on that she didn't want to get off of!

Kristie wrote:
how does clicker training work?

Jean wrote:
Shirley, I would love to hear all about your clicker training. I am very interested in learning all I can about this method. I have used a few clicking sounds by mouth successfully. That is all so far.


You can get the clicker at Petsmart and other pet stores. I can't stress enough the importance of doing the training steps correctly, and slowly. Melinda Johnson's book, Clicker Training for Birds, is excellent, and about $15.00. I've talked to her on the phone a lot back when she was in the final stages of writing it, two years ago. But I didn't get the book until November! Go figure!

You can get it at Amazon.com, or order it at just about any local book store, or from her Website:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Bird-Click/

That's the clicker training site I joined, which is good, but a hassle to use sometimes. I set it NOT to receive the emails, but to check the site for answers, or your mailbox will be flooded with everyone's emails.

Melinda answers all the posts and is extremely helpful. She lives in Washington state, btw, and has a Goffins, a Timneh, and a macaw, but can't remember which kind - Greenwing? - No, thanks to Sadenna's correction below, it's a Red-fronted Macaw. http://9.forumer.com/html/emoticons/bof/smile.gif

Here's the link to my clicker videos when I FIRST started Holly, Shelby, and Skyler.

Shelby is VERY ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder) and has a very short attention span.

Holly is very focused and has a very long attention span.

None are to the point yet of bringing things to me, putting balls in hoops, those kinds of things, but I also rarely work with them.

They never forget what they've learned, and all I have to do now is say "Touch" and they beak touch and I click and treat and say "Good Boy!" or "Good Girl!" I did that with the harness. Touch click treat on lots of parts of the harness. Held it high, low, etc. That's "target training" and they all know that from the "target stick" they learned it with.

The benefit of c/t is they can learn to drink Koolaide from a syringe (medicine later), have their body parts examined (roll over, turn around, lift your wing, your foot, etc) for vet work. It helped with Skyler's collar. And the training stand - they know once on the training stand - it's time to play for treats.

I made the movies in two formats b/c some people couldn't see them in one or the other. The .mov files are exactly the same as the .mpg files, but the .mov files are larger and will take longer to download. They all will run on Quicktime, and if you have the plugin installed and associated with your web browser, then they should run automatically when you click the link. The files are in a list... so you just choose one and click it, then hit your back button, choose another, and so on.

.mpg files: Clicker Training Holly, Shelby, Skyler:

http://shirleymorgan.com/misc/Holly/Movies/

.mov files: identical files to the above:

http://shirleymorgan.com/misc/CT/

You will probably have to play each movie once in a choppy form, then it will be buffered, and will play smoothly the second time. Each one is only a few seconds long, just long enough to perform the behavior.

[Parrots8]

This thread began on Grey Feathers of the old forum, where I have pics of Holly in her harness, so I'm copying it over here:



I wrote:
I have worked with her just a few times since Skyer had to be in a collar. Dr. Cook highly recommended it, and I said I'd tried it way back when I got Shelby, and it didn't really work. Well, right there in the exam room she demonstrated that it DOES work and had Skyler touching a target stick for a treat w/the clicker and a voice command in a matter of moments!! So, I bought Melinda Johnson's book Clicker Training for Birds, re-joined her Yahoo Group, and away we went.

I have the things I've taught them on little movie clips online. I'll start a new thread if there's interest...

Shelby immediately quit nipping once she started c/t. That wasn't even anything I was working on. C/T is for positive behaviors, not for discipline. But the stopping of the nipping was a nice by-product of the C/T. She just liked it so much that she stopped nipping when I asked her to step up off of whomever she was on that she didn't want to get off of!





You can get the clicker at Petsmart and other pet stores. I can't stress enough the importance of doing the training steps correctly, and slowly. Melinda Johnson's book, Clicker Training for Birds, is excellent, and about $15.00. I've talked to her on the phone a lot back when she was in the final stages of writing it, two years ago. But I didn't get the book until November! Go figure!

You can get it at Amazon.com, or order it at just about any local book store, or from her Website:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Bird-Click/

That's the clicker training site I joined, which is good, but a hassle to use sometimes. I set it NOT to receive the emails, but to check the site for answers, or your mailbox will be flooded with everyone's emails.

Melinda answers all the posts and is extremely helpful. She lives in Washington state, btw, and has a Goffins, a Timneh, and a macaw, but can't remember which kind - Greenwing? - No, thanks to Sadenna's correction below, it's a Red-fronted Macaw. http://9.forumer.com/html/emoticons/bof/smile.gif

Here's the link to my clicker videos when I FIRST started Holly, Shelby, and Skyler.

Shelby is VERY ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder) and has a very short attention span.

Holly is very focused and has a very long attention span.

None are to the point yet of bringing things to me, putting balls in hoops, those kinds of things, but I also rarely work with them.

They never forget what they've learned, and all I have to do now is say "Touch" and they beak touch and I click and treat and say "Good Boy!" or "Good Girl!" I did that with the harness. Touch click treat on lots of parts of the harness. Held it high, low, etc. That's "target training" and they all know that from the "target stick" they learned it with.

The benefit of c/t is they can learn to drink Koolaide from a syringe (medicine later), have their body parts examined (roll over, turn around, lift your wing, your foot, etc) for vet work. It helped with Skyler's collar. And the training stand - they know once on the training stand - it's time to play for treats.

I made the movies in two formats b/c some people couldn't see them in one or the other. The .mov files are exactly the same as the .mpg files, but the .mov files are larger and will take longer to download. They all will run on Quicktime, and if you have the plugin installed and associated with your web browser, then they should run automatically when you click the link. The files are in a list... so you just choose one and click it, then hit your back button, choose another, and so on.

.mpg files: Clicker Training Holly, Shelby, Skyler:

http://shirleymorgan.com/misc/Holly/Movies/

.mov files: identical files to the above:

http://shirleymorgan.com/misc/CT/

You will probably have to play each movie once in a choppy form, then it will be buffered, and will play smoothly the second time. Each one is only a few seconds long, just long enough to perform the behavior.

Hi Shirley,

I am sure a lot of people have benefited from what you kindly posted above about clicker training. My question is, will I have to use the clicker forever once they fids react by our commands? Thank you very much.

Lana and The Gang

[Jean]

I am glad you brought this over.

Thanks!

[Shirley]

Hi Shirley,

I am sure a lot of people have benefited from what you kindly posted above about clicker training. My question is, will I have to use the clicker forever once they fids react by our commands? Thank you very much.

Lana and The Gang

No, you won't at all. I tell Holly to turn around all the time when I take her pictures, and don't have a treat or the clicker, and she does and the result is I tell her good girl, and take her picture.. over and over! :)

Once the behavior is learned, you drop the clicker and the treat, but reinforce with the treat often enough to keep them doing the behavior... like a slot machine... do you win evertime you put a nickel in? No, but just one win, and you'll put ten more nickels in.

I always praise with my voice, though.

[Parrots8]

Hi Shirley,

That sounds much better! I personally prefer praising and showing affection. And of course, we won't have a clicker with us all the time. As for the treat, I haven't seen Oliver crazy about any treats too much -- peanuts, almonds, walnuts, dried bananas, etc. He will want them for a piece or two and then he doesn't care for them any more. When he was a baby, I used to give him a whole almond before bed time. But now, he has changed. He wanted to play and did not want to go back to his cage although I tried to bribe him with any of those treats. He would not care. Therefore, my new way is that I turn off all the light in the room and put him gently on his sleeping perch.

I have ordered Melinda's book from Amazon.com but don't know when I will receive it. The way you described about Holly turning around was so amazing to me. I can't wait to start and hope it will work.

I will keep you all posted!
Have a WONDERFUL weekend!

Lana

[Shirley]

Just use a teeny tiny piece of the treat for each reward. They should be able to eat it without their foot holding it, and quickly, so you can move on and keep training, and they'll want more treat. I pinch off teensy pieces of unsalted peanuts.

[Sue]

Thanks Shirley, I'm going to give it a go. Toto's going through a phase where he won't step up maybe this will help.

[Jenn]

Wow those movies make it look easy!

I checked my wholesaler's website for a clicker - they only sell them by the 30 pack. I could probably use more than one, but I don't think I'd want 30 ;) They are out of stock right now but I may look into getting a box... I could always mail out a few if anybody needs some :)

I'll see if I can find out when they will be back in stock again...

Jenn

[Shirley]

Petsmart and similar stores sell them for about $2.50. I can send you one if you like.

I spend less than a week before I shot the movies...

~ Shirley

[shelly]

Hi Shirley,

I'm Shelly and I was reading your post. I have a 4 mo. old Umbrella and was wondering if you still have an extra clicker? If you do, that would be great.

Shelly

[Shirley]

I don't actually have extra clickers. I offered to send one to Sue, whom I write to on occasion, b/c she is in England and can't find them there. They are available for about $2.00 or $2.50 at PetSmart, PetCo, places like that.

Sometimes they are in a basket at the checkout counter, and sometimes you have to ask them where they are.

:cool:

[Parrots8]

I did see it at PetSmart, PetCo and also a few bird (parrot) stores.